The best low-alcohol beers: craft brewers cut out the booze and boost the flavour

Traffic cones can sleep more easily at night because “booze Britain” is not as drinking as much as it used to.  Since 2004, when per capita consumption of alcohol hit its peak at a liver-quivering level of 9.4 litres (20 pints), the figure has fallen 18 per cent and more people – especially the body-conscious younger generation – are adopting a more mature attitude to drinking. 

According to a recent Office of National Statistics (ONS) poll, 21 per cent of people claimed they eschew alcohol entirely. More than a quarter of 16 to 24 year-olds say they don’t drink, while many of those who do are opting for periods of abstention, with Sober October joining Dry January in the booze-free calendar. 

This has been noted by the big brewing corporations. Heineken and Carlsberg have unleashed 0 per cent lagers into a low and non-alcoholic beer sector that, according to analysts, will grow from nearly £63 million a year to £300 million in 10 years – when it will account for five per cent of the UK beer market. 

A 17 per cent increase in sales of non-alcoholic brews coupled with no alcohol duty has also ushered in craft brewers focused on injecting some much-needed flavour. “There has always been a market for these beers,” says Robert Fink, founder of Big Drop Brewing, a microbrewer specialising in low-alcohol beers.

“People have always, for whatever reason, not been able, or not wanted, to drink – it’s just been woefully underserved in terms of quality and choice and with one or two beers monopolising supply. Craft brewers, for whatever reason, haven’t been willing or able to challenge that dominance and people haven’t made a fuss. But now they want a credible alternative that doesn’t compromise on flavour.”

There are several ways that low or non-alcoholic beers have traditionally been brewed – with most brewing a beer normally and then removing the alcohol after. Brewers often heat the beer to evaporate the alcohol, but that can adversely affect other ingredients. 

Some vacuum-distil the beer, a less invasive approach that significantly lowers the boiling point, while others remove the alcohol via “reverse osmosis” – which is a bit like kidney dialysis and requires extremely costly equipment. Less expensive, but more controversial, is halting fermentation before it kicks in – which can produce a sticky, sugary, unbalanced malt taste. 

Those producing so-called “craft” versions of low-alcohol beers tend to use a modest mash bill with less malt and therefore fewer sugars that can be converted into alcohol. They also use a wider variety of grains and ingredients to give the beer more “body”, and use a more laid-back yeast strain and slow it down further with a bit of heat. 

Steve Dass, co-founder of London’s Nirvana Brewing, said: “As we have seen with the spectacular growth of the craft brewing scene, a new breed of discerning consumers have emerged who appreciate quality, provenance and craftsmanship. Our aim is to help expand a category that has, for so long, suffered due to bland, thin options.”

Ten beers to try now

Big Drop Brewing: Chocolate Milk Stout, 0.5% ABV 

Using cocoa nibs and a mixture of different grains, this is a magnificent and mellifluous milk stout that’s more than a match for its more potent peers. In fact, it recently won a silver medal at the World Beer Awards when judged against a field of full-strength stouts and porters. Delicious.  £2.83 for 330ml, drydrinker.com 

Big Drop Brewing: Pale Ale, 0.5% ABV

While hop bitterness and aroma tend to be the first victims of traditional low-alcohol brewing techniques, Big Drop manages to sustain the citrus, lip-smacking character through dry-hopping at the end of the brewing process. £2.83 for 330ml, drydrinker.com

Nirvana Brewing: Tantra Pale Ale  0% ABV

A lovely balance between hop and malt. A traditional English pale ale that keeps its caramel body and finishes with a firm, dry bitterness. £2.66 for 330ml, drydrinker.com

Erdinger: Weissbrau Alkoholfrei, 0.5% ABV

Famed for its wheat beer, this Bavarian brewer boldly sells its alcohol-free beer as a post-exercise isotonic refresher with essential B9 and B12 vitamins that, apparently, have many positive effects on the body. Sweet with faint hints of clove and banana, it tastes a lot better than Lucozade.  £1.30 for 500ml, waitrose.com

Veltins, 0.5% ABV

Non-alcoholic beer is far more popular in Germany than in the UK, and given that Veltins is delivered in Porsche-designed crates, it is no surprise that this is a decent beer you can drink while driving. Nutty yet lean with a touch of honey. £1.19 for 330ml, beerhawk.co.uk

Brewdog Nanny State, 0.5% ABV

Myriad malts and an array of aromatic American hops work wonders to furnish this pale ale with plenty of flavour. Close your eyes and it you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s a “proper” beer. Don’t close them while driving, though.  £1.99 for 330ml, beerhawk.com

Leeds Brewery:  0PA, 0% ABV

Laced with a pine-like hop, this alluring pale ale has a citrus and spice character seldom seen in a non-alcoholic beer.  £2.16 for 330ml, drydrinker.com

St Peter’s Without Gold, 0% ABV

A full-flavoured, malt-driven amber ale with a sweet tangy fruitiness that will go down with more traditional mild or bitter drinkers. £1.83 for 330ml, drydrinker.com

Square Root Shandy, 0.5% ABV

Unlike some of the awful shandies from the big brands, this collaboration between the Hackney-based Square Root, a small-batch soda maker, and craft brewer Pressure Drop is terrifically tropical – made with kiwi juice, mango pulp and orange juice. You could easily drink a couple of pints. £2.33 for 275ml,  drydrinker.com 

Mikkeller Drink’in The Sun, 0.3% ABV

Mikkeller is a cult Danish gipsy brewer whose wares are catnip to hipsters. This suits a sunshine sip; a tangy wheat beer with apricot aromas and gentle carbonation. £2.25 for 330ml, thewinesociety.com

The Thinking Drinkers, Ben McFarland and Tom Sandham, are taking their award-winning tasting and comedy show History of Alcohol on a nationwide UK tour from October. See thinkingdrinkers.com Twitter: @thinkingdrinks